Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	peace_n	spirit_n	unity_n	1,812	5	8.9331	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A55001	A Platform of church discipline gathered out of the Word of God, and agreed upon by the elders, and messengers of the Churches, assembled in the Synod at Cambridge in New England, to be presented to the churches and Generall Court for their consideration and acceptance in the Lord, the eighth moneth, anno 1649.	Mather, Richard, 1596-1669.	1649 (1649)	Wing P2396; ESTC W2574	37,140	44

〈◊〉 extant in the Script●… 〈◊〉 wh●… w●… 〈◊〉 w●… to 〈◊〉 the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 may suffice hear it is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 th●… of may be gathered from just 〈◊〉 of Scripture 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ●…ase 〈◊〉 for ought wee know w●…thout ex 〈◊〉 w●…ch he g●…e 〈◊〉 4 〈◊〉 of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Ans to 2 Qu C 14. Nu●… 16. If any faith he wronged with unj●…st vexation or providing for his own 〈◊〉 or in test●…ony against sin̄ depart from a church where some evills are tollerated joyn himself to another more p●…re yet without cōdemning of the chu●…ch he l●…veth he is not therfore to be h●…ld as a schismatick or as guilty of any other sinn Whe●…e the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which the 〈◊〉 Docter putteth declareth the lawf●…llness of the dep●…ture of a Church-me●…er from his church when e●…ther through w●… 〈◊〉 of unjust vexation or 〈◊〉 way of pr●…sion for h●…s own edification or in test●…ny 〈◊〉 sinn 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to 〈◊〉 co●…gtion mo●…e reformed Any one ●…f 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 c●…use of de●…re Though all of them do not concurr together Neither will such a practise dispoyle the best M●…nisters of the p●… she s of the●… best he●…ers For 1 Somtimes the M●…sters themselves are willing to joyn with their better sort of hearers in this way of reformation then they their h●…rers cont●…nue stil their Ch●…ch relati●… together ye●… confirm●…t mo 〈◊〉 strongly by an express re●…ewed covenant th●…h the Ministers may still continue their w●…ted pre●…ching to the w●…le p●…sh 2 If the M●…ster d●… 〈◊〉 the way of those w●…om they otherwise 〈◊〉 their best me●…bers so refuse to joyn with them therin yet ●…f those members can procu●…e s●…e other Mi●…ster to joyn with them in their ow●… way st●…ll 〈◊〉 their 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in the same town they may easily order the times of the 〈◊〉 assembly as to attend constantly upon the 〈◊〉 of their former Church either after or before the publick assembly of the parish take an opportunity to gather together for t●…e 〈◊〉 of Sacramēts Censure●… other church ordinances amongst themselves The fi●…st Apostolick 〈◊〉 assembled to hear the word with the Jewish church in the open courts of the Temple but 〈◊〉 gathered together for 〈◊〉 of 〈◊〉 other acts of church-order from house to house 3 Suppose Pre●…byteriall churches should cōmunicate so●…e of their best gifted members toward the erecting gathering of another 〈◊〉 ●…t would not forthwith be their detriment but may be their 〈◊〉 It is the most noble perfect work of a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 bot●… 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ●…gate multiply his kind●… t●… t●…e honour of the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ●…t to set forward the wor●… of Ch●…st 〈◊〉 well 〈◊〉 as at home The 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the 8●… 8. to help forw●…rd he●… little ●…-church w●… 〈◊〉 t●… 〈◊〉 ●…th he●… ch●…yse-materiall even be●…es of Ced●…r such pretio●… living 〈◊〉 ●…s wee●… fit to build a Silver pall●…ce In the same book the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 comp●…ed some●…e to a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to an orchard Cant 4. 1●… 13. No 〈◊〉 plant to a garden or orchard but seeketh to get the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 plant of his neighbours they freely imp●…rt them nor doe they accoūt●…t 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to their garden orchards but rat●… 〈◊〉 Nevertheless wee go not so farr we ne●…ther seek nor ●…alk the choyse-members of the parishes but accept them being offered If it be sa●… ●…hey are not offered by the M●…nisters nor by the par●…sh churc●…s who have most right in them but only by themselves It may j●…stly be dema●…nded what right or what powr have either the ministers or parish church over them Not by solemn church coven●…nt for that though it be the fi●…est engagement is not owned but rejected If it be by Their joyning with the parish in the calling election of a minister to such a congregation at his first comming there is indeed just weight in such an ingagement nor doe wee judge it safe for such to remove from such a minister unless it be upon such grounds as may justly give him due satisfactiō But if the uniō of such members to a parish Church to the ministery therof be only by cohabitation within the precincts of the parish that union as it was founded upō humane law so by humane law it may easily be released Or otherwise if a man remove his habitation he removeth also the bond of his relation the ground of offence 4 It need not to be feared that all best hearers of the best ministers no nor the most of them will depart from them upon point of church-governmēt Those who have found the presence powr of the spirit of Christ breathing in their ministers either to their conversion or edification will be slow to change such a ministery of faith holyness for the liberty of church-order Upon which ground sundry other such like their be doubtless sundry godly judicious hearers in many parishes in England that doe will prefer their relation to their ministers though in a presbyteriall way above the Congreg●…tionall confoederation 5 But if all or the most part of the best hearers of the best ministers of parishes should depart from them as preferring in their judgments the congregationall way yet in case the congregationall way should prove to be of Christ it will never greiv the holy hearts of godly ministers that their hearers should follow after Christ yea many of themselves upon due deliberation will be reaedy to go along with them It never greived nor troubled John Baptist that his best disciples departed from him to follow after Christ Joh. 3. But in case the congregationall way should prove to be not the institution of Christ as wee take it but the invētion of men then doubtless the presbyteriall form if it be of God will swallow up the other●… as Moses rod devoured the rods of the Aegyptians Nor will this put a necessity upon both the opposite partyes to sh●…ft for themselves to seek to supplant one another but only it will call upon them {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} to seek to follow the trueth in love to attend in faithfullness each ūto his own flock to administer to the●… all the holy things of God their port ō of food in due season as for others quietly to forbear them yet to instruct them with meekness that are contrary minded leaving it to Christ in the use of all good meanes to reveal his own trueth in his own time mean while endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace 〈◊〉 p. 3. 15 16. Ephesians 4. 3. To the 2 Exception That wee take no co●…rse for the gayning healing 〈◊〉 in of ignorant erronious scandal●…s persōs whom wee refuse to receive into our churches so exclude them from the rēmidy of church 〈◊〉 Wee conceive the

place that the unworthy may be duely proceeded against by the Church to whom this matter doth appertaine CHAP XV Of the cōmunion of Churches one with another ALthough Churches be distinct therfore may not be confoūded one with another equall therfore have not dominion one over another yet all the churches ought to preserve Church-communion one with another because they are all united unto Christ not only as a mysticall but as a politicall head whence is derived a communion suitable therunto 2 The communion of Churches is exercised sundry wayes I By way of mutuall care in taking thought for one anothers wellfare II By way of Consultation one with another when wee have occasion to require the judgment counsell of other churches touching any person or cause wherwith they may be better acquainted then our selves As the church of Antioch consulted with the Apostles Elders of the church at Ierusalem about the question of circumcision of the gentiles about the false teachers that broached that doctrine In which case when any Church wanteth light or peace amongst themselves it is a way of communion of churches according to the word to meet t●…ether by their Elders other messengers in a synod to consider argue the points in doubt or d●…fference haveing found out the way of truth peace to commend the same by their letters messengers to the churches whom the same may concern But if a Church be rent with divisions amongst themselves or ly under any open scandal yet refuse to consult with other churches for healing or removing of the same it is a matter of just offence both to the Lord Jesus to other churches as bewraying too much want of mercy faithfulness not to seek to bind up the breaches wounds of the church brethren therfore the state of such a church calleth aloud upon other churches to excercise a fuller act of brotherly communion to witt by way of admonition III A third way then of cōmunion of churches is by way of admonition to witt in case any publick offēce be found in a church which they either discern not or are slow in proceeding to use the meāes for the removing healing of Paul had no authority over Peter yet when he saw Peter not walking with a right foot he publickly rebuked him before the church though churches have no more authority one over another then one Apostle had over another yet as one Apostle might admonish another so may one church admonish another yet without usurpation In which case if the church that lyeth under offence do not harken to the church which doth admonish her the church is to aquait other neighbour-churches with that offēce which the offending church still lyeth under together with their neglect of the brotherly admonition given unto them wherupon those other churches are to joyn in seconding the admonitiō formerly givē and if still the offēding church continue in obstinacy impenitency they may forbear communion with them are to proceed to make use of the help of a Synod or counsell of neighbour-churches walkig orderly if a greater can̄ot conveniētly be had for their conviction If they hear not the Synod the Synod having declared them to be obstinate particular churches approving accepting of the judgmēt of the Synod are to declare the sentence of non-cōmunion respectively concerning them therupon out of a religious care to keep their own communion pure they may justly withdraw themselves from participation with them at the Lords table from such other acts of holy cōm●…ion as the communion of churches doth otherwise allow require Nevertheless if any members of such a church as lyeth under publick offence do●… not consent to the offence of the church but doe in due sort beare witness against it they are still to be received to wonted communion for it is not equall that the in●…cent should suffer with the offensive Yea furthermore if such innocent members after due wayting in the use of all good meanes for the healing of the offence of their ●…wn church shall at last with the allowāce of the counsel of ne gh●…our-churches withdraw from the fellowship of their own ch●…ch 〈◊〉 offer themselves to the fellowship of another wee judge it lawll for the other church to receive them being otherwise fitt as if they had been orderly dismissed to them from their own churc●… IV A fourth way of communion of churches is by way of particip●…n the members of one church occasion●…lly comming unto another wee willingly admitt t●…em to 〈◊〉 with us at the Lords t●…le it being the seale of our communion not only with Christ nor o●…ly with the members of our own church but also with all the churches of the saints in which regard wee refuse not to baptize their children presented to us if either their own minister be absent or such a fruite of holy fellowsh●…p be desired with us In like case s●…ch churches as are furnished with more ministers then one doe willingly afford one of their own ministers to supply the place of an absent or s●…ck minister of another church for a needfull season V A fifth way of Church-communion is by way of ●…mendation when a member of one church hath occasion to reside in another church if but for a season wee cōmend him to their watchf●…ll ffellowsh●…p by letters of recommendation but if he be 〈◊〉 to settle his abode there wee commit him according to h●…s desire to the ffellowship of their covenant by letters of d●…smission VI A sixt way of Church-communion is in case of Ne●… to minister reliefe succour one unto another 〈◊〉 of able members to furnish them with officers or of outward ●…pport to the necessityes of poorer churches as did the 〈◊〉 of the Gentiles contribute liberally to the poor s●…ints at Ierusalem 3 When a compāy of beleivers purpose to gather into church fellowship it is requisite for their sa●…er proceeding the maintaining of the communion of churches that they sign●…fie their intent unto the neighbour-churches walking according unto the order of the Gospel desire their presence help right hand of fellowship which they ought readily to give unto them when their is no just cause of excepting against their proceedings 4 Besides these severall wayes of communion there is also a way of propagation of churches when a church shall grow too numerous it is a way fitt season to propagate one Church out of an other by sending forth such of their mēbers as are willing to remove to procure some officers to them as may enter with them into church-estate amongst themselves as Bees when the hive is too full issue forth by swarmes are gathered into other hives soe the Churches of Christ may doe the same upon like necessity therin hold forth